A 30ft sculpture of Nelson Mandela has angered South African officials as the sculptors left a ‘signature’ on the artwork – a sculpted rabbit tucked inside one of the bronze ears.
一个高达30英尺的曼德拉雕像惹怒了南非政府，因为负责雕像的艺术家为了在上面留下“签名”，在大雕像的耳朵里偷偷雕了一只兔子。

The bronze memorial, which was unveiled outside the government complex in Pretoria, after Mandela’s funeral on December 16, is billed as the largest statue of the South African leader in the world.
12月16日曼德拉葬礼之后，这一铜像在比勒陀利亚政府大厦外公布，据称这是这位南非领导人最大的雕像。

Officials demand that the miniature rabbit is to be removed from the statue, claiming it mocks Mandela and his life’s work.
政府要求把这只兔子雕塑除掉，称它玷污了曼德拉及其毕生的事业。

The department of arts and culture said it didn't know the two sculptors, Andre Prinsloo and Ruhan Janse van Vuuren, had added a rabbit, said to be a discreet signature on their work.
文化部称并不知道负责的两位艺术家普林斯鲁和范伏伦，在雕像中偷藏了一只兔子，据说这只兔子是两位艺术家在自己的作品上精心留下的签名。

The bronze rabbit, sitting on its haunches with one floppy ear, is about half the height of the ear canal.
这只兔子铜雕有曼德拉雕像耳洞一半那么高，半耷拉着耳朵坐在那里。

‘It doesn't belong there,’ said Mogomotsi Mogodiri, a department spokesman. ‘The statue represents what everyone in South Africa is proud of.’
“这只兔子不属于整座雕像，” 南非国务院发言人Mogomotsi Mogodiri 说道，“曼德拉铜像代表着全南非人民的骄傲。”

The giant work stands with arms outstretched, symbolizing Mandela's devotion to inclusiveness, outside the Union Buildings, where the his body rests.
这个巨大雕像手臂张开，代表着曼德拉胸怀宽广、包容一切。雕像屹立于联合大厦门外，这里也是他安葬的地方。

Earlier this week, South Africa's Beeld newspaper quoted the artists as saying they added the rabbit as a ‘trademark’ after officials would not allow them to engrave their signatures on the statue's trousers.
本周早些时候，南非《回响报》报道说，两位艺术家自称政府不允许他们在雕像的裤子部位雕刻签名，于是就在雕塑的时候增加了一只兔子作为“标志”。

They also said the rabbit represented the pressure of finishing the sculpture on time because ‘haas’ - the word for rabbit in the Dutch-based Afrikaans language - also means ‘haste.’
他们还说，这只兔子代表按时完成雕像的压力。因为在以荷兰语为基础的阿非利堪斯语中，“haas”代表“兔子”，同时这个单词还有“匆忙”的意思。

Paul Mashatile, arts and culture minister, said the sculptors have apologized for any offense to those who felt the rabbit was disrespectful toward the legacy of Mandela.
南非文化部副部长保罗·马什迪尔说，两位艺术家已经为自己的过错道歉，他们雕刻兔子的行为冒犯了曼德拉的遗雕。